Radiculopathy & sciatica decisions — 2023

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection and rating of her spinal disorders, including chronic thoracolumbar pain, segmental and somatic dysfunction of the lumbar and thoracic region, ankylosing spondylitis of cervical spine, neuralgia of all three radicular groups, and stress fracture right inferior pubic ramus (right hip disability).

The Board has remanded the cases for further development due to the Veteran's incarceration and inability to be examined. The VA will schedule the Veteran for examinations to determine the nature and etiology of his TBI, as well as the severity of his lumbar spine and bilateral lower extremity radiculopathy disabilities.

The Veteran's claims for earlier effective dates related to service connection and rating increases have been remanded.,No specific effective date has been determined as the appeal is currently in a remand status.

Your appeal has been dismissed because the Veteran withdrew his appeal before a decision was made.

The Veteran's service connection claim for sleep apnea was denied as the condition is not caused or aggravated by his service-connected disabilities.,Ratings greater than 20 percent were denied for left and right lower extremity femoral nerve radiculopathies, left and right lower extremity sciatic radiculopathies, and thoracolumbar spine degenerative disc disease (DDD).,PTSD was also denied as not productive of total occupational and social impairment.

The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for left lower extremity sciatica, finding that there is no current diagnosis of a left lower extremity sciatica and attributing the pain to his non-service connected left knee disability.

The Veteran's cervical spine disability is currently rated at 30 percent, and the Board has determined that a higher rating is not warranted based on the evidence of record.

The Veteran's tinnitus is service-connected as it is related to his military noise exposure.,Service connection for bilateral hearing loss is remanded due to conflicting evidence regarding its onset during service and post-service treatment history.,Service connection for rhinorrhea (rhinitis) is remanded due to the need for clarification on pre-service presence of the condition and in-service reports.,Service connection for a thoracolumbar spine disability is remanded as there are conflicting opinions regarding its onset during service and post-service treatment history.,Service connection for right lower extremity sciatica is remanded due to conflicting opinions regarding its onset during service and post-service treatment history.,Service connection for left hip disability (gluteal muscle strain) is remanded due to the need for clarification on pre-service presence of the condition and in-service reports.,Service connection for left leg pain (muscle cramping) is remanded as there are conflicting opinions regarding its onset during service and post-service treatment history.,Service connection for right knee patellofemoral pain syndrome with degenerative arthritis is remanded due to conflicting opinions regarding its onset during service and post-service treatment history.

The Board has decided to remand the current issues on appeal due to incomplete requests for private medical records and a need to notify the Appellant of the incomplete VA Form 21-4142. The case will be returned to the Board after compliance with these actions.

The Veteran's PTSD and the newly diagnosed peripheral neuropathy and/or radiculopathy of the bilateral upper and lower extremities are being remanded for further evaluation.

The Veteran's appeal has been remanded for further development regarding his service-connected lumbosacral strain, right lower extremity radiculopathy, and obstructive sleep apnea. The extension of a temporary disability rating for left hallux valgus through July 31, 2011 is granted.

The Board has remanded the cases for further examination and evaluation due to new evidence of worsening symptoms.

The Board has remanded the claims for further evidentiary development, including VA examinations to determine the nature and etiology of the Veteran's cervical spine disability. The Veteran was not provided adequate notice of his most recently scheduled examination in December 2022.

The claim to reopen service connection for a left shoulder disability is granted. The case is remanded due to the need for additional medical records and an opinion on whether LUE radiculopathy aggravates the left shoulder disability.

The Veteran's appeal is denied for various conditions and ratings, with some issues being denied in excess of the assigned rating and others having their ratings denied altogether.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for additional development due to inadequate prior VA examination and missing treatment records. The issues include rating increases for lumbar spine conditions, right lower extremity radiculopathy, left lower extremity radiculopathy, and TDIU.

The Veteran's DDD of the lumbar spine, RLE and LLE radiculopathy have been evaluated based on their current manifestations. The RO granted higher evaluations for some conditions but denied others.

The Veteran's sensory neuropathy of the left lower extremity of the sciatic nerve and femoral nerves are currently rated at 20 percent each, but he contends for higher ratings.,The Veteran is also seeking an increased rating for his status post laminectomy with spondylolisthesis L4 and L5 condition.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities, including his knee and back conditions, have rendered him unable to secure or follow substantially gainful employment prior to September 4, 2012. The Board has remanded for further development regarding the issues of higher ratings for his bilateral knee disabilities and lower extremity radiculopathies.

The Veteran is granted a TDIU from July 31, 2014 to July 24, 2016 and November 15, 2017 to March 30, 2018 due to her service-connected disabilities preventing her from securing and following a substantially gainful occupation.